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Forest Lore of the Maori

Paths and Travelling

page 28

Paths and Travelling

In forest country the Maori sought the easiest route for a track so long as it did not require too much trouble to prevent it being over-grown with brushwood. As he did not possess tools fitted for excavation he did not often locate paths on a sideling, but, as a rule, in hill country, they ran up leading spurs and along the summits of ridges. Occasionally the bed of a stream served as a path. When a new path was being laid out the trail breaker marked the route by means of breaking, but not severing, branchlets and the smaller young trees. This marked the line of the future path, and such a trail was known as an ara pawhati. Williams gives kowata as denoting the act of breaking the branchlets, etc., though whati seems to be commonly used. Subsequent travellers proceeding along such a path would help to keep it open by means of breaking off any new growth encroaching on the pathway. At certain points were resting-places where travellers would rest a while ere proceeding on their journey. In forest-clad hill-country such spots were usually selected at some place where, by clearing a small space, a view of the surrounding lands might be obtained, and these outlooks are termed taumata. This word has so come to carry the double meaning of 'brow of a hill' and 'resting-place,' but it cannot be applied to a resting-place in flat country, which is merely an okiokinga. The old type of Maori much appreciated a commanding taumata from which a fine view of his tribal lands might be obtained, and when resting at such places I have frequently heard them crooning old songs that referred to long past occurrences at the places they looked upon. At such a place persons resting would converse on ordinary subjects, but would not indulge in any serious deliberations, and so we have a quaint saying, viz., He korero taumata that is used to denote gossip, or 'unofficial' remarks, etc. He toa taumata rau; courage has many resting places, i.e., is not a quality confined to one person, or to a few. Taumata okiokinga, a term applied to capable, reliable chief.

Paths in fern-clad areas, lands overgrown with the common bracken (Pteridium aquilinum), really give more trouble to the way-farer than those passing through forests, for every year the fern-growth encroaches on the pathway, which is not to be cleared, unless the fern be burned, and that, in olden days, was often undesirable. The Maori of yore did not like to see the forest, one of his principal 'food baskets,' destroyed, and reckless burning might well cause serious quarrels. A cautionary saying of the Maori runs as follows: "Ka tahuna te ururua ki te ahi e kore e tumau tonu ki te wahi i tahuna page 29atu ai, kaore, ka ka katoa te parae" (When brushwood is set fire to the fire does not confine itself to the place where it was kindled, no, the whole countryside takes fire).

In some districts paths often led through swamps and even shallow lagoons occupied by plant life such as Phormium, Mariscus, Eleocharis, Scirpus, Typha, etc., and in some cases the traversing of these swamp trails was a distressing experience. The Titinaroa swamp near Te Teko was such a trial to travellers, as I know full well, indeed its name is descriptive of the unpleasant experience of wading through soft mud hidden under darkling waters (tina=exhausted). When such swamp tracks led through deep mud they were sometimes improved by laying down a goodly layer of bracken or manukabrush. In our modern draining operations we sometimes cut through such fascined paths of olden days.

When a path ran up a steep cliff several forms of hand and footholds might be utilized; in some cases rude ladders were used, in others a trailing forest-vine, or a rope secured at the upper end served as a hand grip, such a place being often known as Te Ara-taura, as witness a place of that name on the rough coast-line between Titahi and Owhariu bays, Wellington district. Wooden pegs driven into a cliff face were sometimes resorted to, and occasionally steps were formed by excavation; the former is known as an ara tiatia.

Ever was the Maori at home in the water, and so an expert at fording rivers, many of which are highly dangerous even when not in spate; he was, and is, extremely ingenious in devising means of crossing flooded or ordinarily dangerous rivers; I have known some very remarkable river-swimming feats to be performed by natives desirous of crossing rivers in high flood. Apart from such unaided swimming, rude floats were occasionally used, and these might be so constructed as to support a certain amount of baggage. When procurable the dry and light scapes of the Phormium plant were used for making such floats; moki and mokihi are well-known names for such aids. These scapes were collected in great numbers and tied together with strips of Phormium-laef, or leaves of Cordyline. The result might be a single bundle that served as a float to assist a swimmer, or a number of such bundles so tied together as to form a rude form of boat, one into which, of course, water entered. These contrivances are fully described in No. 9 of this Bulletin series.

The tuwhana or breast-pole was sometimes employed by a number of persons when wading a swift river. Dr. Shortland, in his Southern page 30Districts of New Zealand, describes the use of this river-crossing aid as follows:—

"The natives use a pole to aid them in crossing these rapid rivers. Two or three persons hold this pole, which they call a tuwhana, firmly about breast high, the strongest being stationed at the end pointing up the stream. They then take advantage of the set of the current to get from one shoal or shingle bank to another, always allowing it to carry them with it, while they strive to advance across it."

In C. H. Kettle's account of his exploring trip up the Manawatu River, through Wairarapa and across the Rimutaka range to Wellington, as made in 1842, is given another brief description of this aid to waders:—

"The natives having all reached the edge of the river, we took a long pole with which we stood along abreast of each other, and, holding it up with one hand, walked into the river and crossed with very little difficulty, the water reaching to the armpits. This is an excellent method of crossing a rapid river: those that are not as strong as the rest have a good support, and all act with a combined force against the stream."

The river crossed in this manner was the Waiohine. Brunner, who saw hard service when exploring Westland in the 'forties of last century, also alludes to, and describes, the use of the breast-pole.

As a bridge-builder there is little to say for the Maori; his efforts in that direction were confined, apparently, to the laying of poles across narrow chasms, etc., and to an occasional crude form of short swing or suspension footbridge. G. F. Angas, who travelled in New Zealand in the middle 'forties in search of the picturesque, mentions seeing several of these simple bridgings in his Savage Life and Scenes. During one of his forest expeditions he wrote: "We crossed another river, twelve feet deep, by means of a narrow tree along which we passed, holding each other's hands, and supported by our poles." When nearing the Waikato River he remarks: "We crossed two native bridges over marshy creeks; they were constructed by laying a great quantity of fern across small trunks of trees, and brushwood placed lengthwise." When approaching Taupo Angas noted the canyon-like chasms of that region: "We crossed a boisterous river on a native bridge of tea-tree boughs swung by flax [Phormium] from the opposite trees. The river foamed along a deep chasm or glen of pumice…. The dark, wild, and deep stream rushing below looked awful from the frail bridge, which rocked like a cradle over the abyss." At another nerve-testing chasm at Mangakino a swinging bridge tied with flax gave way on being cautiously tested.

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In Major Richardson's little work entitled A Summer's Excursion in New Zealand (1854) he describes travelling in the interior as it was. Of certain experiences near the Whanganui River he wrote: "We imagined that we had nothing to learn in the art of bridge-making. One bridge, in particular, I distinctly remember …. it consisted of four poles, each inches in diameter, placed in contact, vertically, one above the other, spanning a stream twenty feet wide and apparently of drowning depth, the only assistance in this extraordinary calisthenic exercise being a loose piece of supple-jack suspended across it, a few feet higher. Another bridge consisted of two small trunks of trees, one from each side, meeting somewhere under water, the exact position of the junction each having to discover for himself by carefully feeling with his feet as he advanced, a stream of no ordinary rapidity and depth rushing by during the operation. Somehow or other we managed to get across, how, we know not."

So much for the Maori as a bridge-builder; he made but little use of such conveniences, for assuredly he is an expert at crossing swift-running rivers, mostly by swimming, and lacking extraneous aid. In the case of swift, turbulent streams, wherein occur dangerous boulders, he is given to crossing by means of treading water, taking a somewhat long slant down stream so that the current will assist him to reach the other side. I have myself employed this method at times in preference to the toko or hand-pole, and certainly to the head-balanced boulder carried as a 'make-weight.'

All paths were very narrow, hence all travelling was done in single file, and so a large party was strung out for a considerable distance. Very little clothing was worn when on the march, but, when on a friendly visit, superior garments were carried in bundle form and donned on reaching the party's destination, but prior to entering a village. Scarcely any travelling was done during hours of darkness, save, occasionally, when raiders were abroad and a hurry-call for assistance was sent out.

The Maori has a budget of sayings connected with paths and travelling; the following illustrates the desirability of being in the front of a party marching in single file along rude paths: E mua ata haere, e muri whatiwhati waewae: Those in front march calmly along while those in rear hurry, stumble, and wound their bare feet. Another such is: E mua kai kai, e muri kai huare: The leaders have time to partake of food, but those in rear can but swallow their saliva. In the following the Maori shews us that a traveller is by no means so important a person when abroad as he is at home: He kuri, he tangata haere; in brief, A dog, a traveller; could conciseness go further? A lengthened form of this is: He tangata te tangata ki page 32tona kainga, ka taka ki te haere he kuri raua (ko tona kuri): A man is a man at his home, when moving abroad both (he and his dog) are dogs.

Good walkers are alluded to as waewae mānā, light-footed ones, and I have heard the expression waewae taurekareka applied to a quick walker, so that quick movements, except in the use of arms and in games, may have been deemed fitted only for plebeians, servitors. When, on a long journey, you frequently ask a companion how far it is to your destination, he will probably reply: Ka uia tonutia e koe ka roa tonu te ara; ka kare koe e ui ka poto te ara: If you frequently ask the distance the path will be long; if you refrain from asking it will be short. A path much appreciated by the barefooted Maori was a smooth sand beach, often alluded to as 'te ara one a Hine-tuakirikiri; the sandy path of the Sand Maid. When Takahi of Te Whakaki invited Mahu to pass the night there, as evening was far advanced, the latter replied: "Kaore ana; kāpā he ara i te wao, tena te ara na Hine-matakirikiri i waiho e kore e tutuki te waewae." (Not so; it is not as though it were a rough forest path, on the other hand, on the path left by the Sand Maid no foot may stumble.) The name given is another name of Hine-one, the personified form of sand.

The Maori objected to travelling by night, and possessed the widely-known fear of darkness, or what darkness is believed to conceal, that is familiar to all peoples. Thus the Urewera folk, who had a habit of making night marches when necessary, were distinguished by the title of 'Te Urewera haero po;' i.e., the night-travelling Urewera. But our Maori had by no means so strong an objection to travelling in rain as we have. At the same time a person specially noted for his disregard of the elements, one who walks care-free through heavy rain, is alluded to as 'Te uri a Uruika? or the descendant of Uruika, the latter, who was much given to excursions during wet weather, being an ancestor of the Bay of Plenty natives. Certainly the old native garments were most suitable for such travelling, with a rough cape over his shoulders to protect his body, the Maori recked little of getting his naked legs wet. When travelling he might pass the night on wet ground, and sometimes made no form of shelter when rain threatened; if rain caught him unprepared at night he would, in many cases, squat down and wrap his rough cape round his body, leaving his head, or the top thereof exposed. During Cook's stay at Mercury Bay a party of 'Indians' was encountered, and we are told that those natives "during all that time never erected the least covering, though it twice rained almost without ceasing for twenty-four hours together."

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The men of yore, who were extremely fond of quoting maxims and wise old saws, were wont to remark: "Never camp near a path, lest your camp be over-run by the off-spring of hunger" (koi whakaekea to kainga e te whanau a te hiakai).

An old saying runs: Karia e haere, kia kopi te waha o te pakiaka. This refers to traversing a path through a gloom-laden forest, when one is ever apt to strike one's (unprotected) toes against roots, do not hurry at such a time, or the roots will have the best of it. Another is: Kaore e tae te waewae kai pakiaka ki te waewae kai kapua, which seems to claim that a traveller stumbling over roots cannot vie with a swift, active walker.